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At end of the every year, I make a long blogpost looking back at the year's highlights or write down my goals for the new year. Thi...
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My 9-Day Itinerary in Melbourne
I originally had no plans of sharing my Melbourne itinerary but one of my friends is heading there this month and she made a special request so here it is.
As you can already notice from my itinerary, I made sure to put a brunch spot almost everyday because Melbourne is the brunch capital of the world and their coffee is no doubt THE BEST. (I wrote about it in my previous entry found here.) We didn't do so many touristy things since the purpose of my visit was just to catch up with three of my friends who were based in Australia. We spent most of our time talking over meals, movie marathons every night, and stopping in every cute shop we saw. The only touristy thing we did was book a tour in the Great Ocean Road. My favorite activity among everything we did was the Yarra Valley Wine Tour because I love my wine.
Melbourne is a very laid back city. It's so easy to lose track of time because you're just enjoying relaxing. It's also a very young city so it's ideal for those who are between their 20s to 30s. I think it's more for solo travellers or a group of friends rather than families. For families, I would suggest Gold Coast because it's near the beach. While for those more adventurous and prefer to be out and about everyday with a jam pack itinerary, I would suggest Sydney. You'll never run out of things to do there because there's so much to see.
 |
| Mandee and I |
I think nine days in Melbourne was just right. It was enough time to do everything I planned but still not enough time with my friends whom I miss so much. This is the last of my Melbourne series. Next up will be Korea!
 |
| Shrine of Remembrance |
 |
| Prahan Market |
 |
| Botanical Garden |
 |
| Ponyfish Island |
 |
| St. Kilda Pier |
 |
| Brighton Beach |
 |
| St. Paul's Cathedral |
 |
| National Gallery of Victoria |
I originally had no plans of sharing my Melbourne itinerary but one of my friends is heading there this month and she made a special request so here it is.
As you can already notice from my itinerary, I made sure to put a brunch spot almost everyday because Melbourne is the brunch capital of the world and their coffee is no doubt THE BEST. (I wrote about it in my previous entry found here.) We didn't do so many touristy things since the purpose of my visit was just to catch up with three of my friends who were based in Australia. We spent most of our time talking over meals, movie marathons every night, and stopping in every cute shop we saw. The only touristy thing we did was book a tour in the Great Ocean Road. My favorite activity among everything we did was the Yarra Valley Wine Tour because I love my wine.
Melbourne is a very laid back city. It's so easy to lose track of time because you're just enjoying relaxing. It's also a very young city so it's ideal for those who are between their 20s to 30s. I think it's more for solo travellers or a group of friends rather than families. For families, I would suggest Gold Coast because it's near the beach. While for those more adventurous and prefer to be out and about everyday with a jam pack itinerary, I would suggest Sydney. You'll never run out of things to do there because there's so much to see.
|
| Mandee and I |
I think nine days in Melbourne was just right. It was enough time to do everything I planned but still not enough time with my friends whom I miss so much. This is the last of my Melbourne series. Next up will be Korea!
|
| Shrine of Remembrance |
|
| Prahan Market |
|
| Botanical Garden |
|
| Ponyfish Island |
|
| St. Kilda Pier |
|
| Brighton Beach |
|
| St. Paul's Cathedral |
|
| National Gallery of Victoria |
My Yarra Valley Wine Tour Experience
I was first introduced to wine at the age of 10 by my parents. I would see them drink it on Christmas Eve or someone's birthday. I thought it was a "fancy" drink since they would drink it on special occasions. It made me curious as to what made it so special so during family dinner I asked for a sip from my mom.
I can't quite remember what my reaction was since it was a while back but I do remember that it made me sleepy. So when I was finally in the legal age to drink, wine would never be my first option. I'd go for cocktails-- an amaretto sour or a lychee martini (Both very girly girl choice of drinks). But later on towards the end of college, I found out how bad cocktails were because of the insane amount of sugar in it. I wanted to look for a healthier/ more slimming choice of drink. They said it's either I drink hard drinks on the rocks or wine.
I tried hard drinks while I still had the energy to keep up. Then in my mid 20s, I switched to wine as my go-to-drink. A glass of wine before going to sleep always relaxed me. Plus, the doctor did say that it's good for the heart.
"Oh no now that I like wine does that mean I'm turning into my parents?!" Kidding aside--- Ever since I discovered my love for wine, I was interested in learning more about it. My friend said that Melbourne was home to some of the best wines in the world.
I booked a winery tour in Yarra Valley via viator.com with Mika, my childhood best friend of over 15 years. It felt surreal that we were once in leotards in the 3rd grade dancing ballet and look where we are now, living on opposite sides of the world, (She's based in New York now) but toasting our wine glasses on a perfect day in Yarra Valley.
Our first stop: Domaine Chandon Winery
Chandon is known for making the best sparkling wines in the world and some of the most expensive ones too.
The sommelier will walk you through all the kinds of sparkling wines that they offer-- Starting with their dry wines to their sweetest wine. Their sweetest wine is Rosé which was my favorite.
 |
| They have private rooms perfect for having a wine night with a group of friends |
 |
| Look how beautiful our backdrop is! This photo was taken by our tour guide. |
Second Stop: De Bartoli Winery
De Bartoli has been around for almost a decade. It's one of the biggest family-owned wineries in the world. I couldn't agree more with their motto, " Semper ad Majora ("Always striving for better"). In my opinion, their wines were the best. I took home a bottle of their Chardonnay because I loved it so much.
 |
| In 2017, Noble One won as the best sweet dessert wine in Melbourne |
All of us were a bit tipsy already for wine tasting. We needed to get some food in our system. We went to Medhurst Wines for lunch. The tour costs $140 per person including all the fees of the wine tastings, lunch, and pick up and drop off at the hotel.
 |
| Cold Cuts for Appetizers |
 |
| Lamb Meatball for Main Course |
Our last stop: Yerring Winery
Yerring is the smallest among the three because it's a boutique winery but their wine selection did not disappoint. Their most famous for their red wines. I'm more of a white wine kind of girl but I did enjoy sipping their Pinot Noir.
I was first introduced to wine at the age of 10 by my parents. I would see them drink it on Christmas Eve or someone's birthday. I thought it was a "fancy" drink since they would drink it on special occasions. It made me curious as to what made it so special so during family dinner I asked for a sip from my mom.
I can't quite remember what my reaction was since it was a while back but I do remember that it made me sleepy. So when I was finally in the legal age to drink, wine would never be my first option. I'd go for cocktails-- an amaretto sour or a lychee martini (Both very girly girl choice of drinks). But later on towards the end of college, I found out how bad cocktails were because of the insane amount of sugar in it. I wanted to look for a healthier/ more slimming choice of drink. They said it's either I drink hard drinks on the rocks or wine.
I tried hard drinks while I still had the energy to keep up. Then in my mid 20s, I switched to wine as my go-to-drink. A glass of wine before going to sleep always relaxed me. Plus, the doctor did say that it's good for the heart.
"Oh no now that I like wine does that mean I'm turning into my parents?!" Kidding aside--- Ever since I discovered my love for wine, I was interested in learning more about it. My friend said that Melbourne was home to some of the best wines in the world.
I booked a winery tour in Yarra Valley via viator.com with Mika, my childhood best friend of over 15 years. It felt surreal that we were once in leotards in the 3rd grade dancing ballet and look where we are now, living on opposite sides of the world, (She's based in New York now) but toasting our wine glasses on a perfect day in Yarra Valley.
Our first stop: Domaine Chandon Winery
Chandon is known for making the best sparkling wines in the world and some of the most expensive ones too.
The sommelier will walk you through all the kinds of sparkling wines that they offer-- Starting with their dry wines to their sweetest wine. Their sweetest wine is Rosé which was my favorite.
|
| They have private rooms perfect for having a wine night with a group of friends |
|
| Look how beautiful our backdrop is! This photo was taken by our tour guide. |
Second Stop: De Bartoli Winery
De Bartoli has been around for almost a decade. It's one of the biggest family-owned wineries in the world. I couldn't agree more with their motto, " Semper ad Majora ("Always striving for better"). In my opinion, their wines were the best. I took home a bottle of their Chardonnay because I loved it so much.
|
| In 2017, Noble One won as the best sweet dessert wine in Melbourne |
All of us were a bit tipsy already for wine tasting. We needed to get some food in our system. We went to Medhurst Wines for lunch. The tour costs $140 per person including all the fees of the wine tastings, lunch, and pick up and drop off at the hotel.
|
| Cold Cuts for Appetizers |
|
| Lamb Meatball for Main Course |
Our last stop: Yerring Winery
Yerring is the smallest among the three because it's a boutique winery but their wine selection did not disappoint. Their most famous for their red wines. I'm more of a white wine kind of girl but I did enjoy sipping their Pinot Noir.
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